Dye for wood toys

[SparkkiSparkS]

Iv started to make some toys myself and I have everything I need, but the wood parts are not colored. What dye can I use and where can I get it? Is regular food coloring ok?

 

[friedsoup]

best I've found is koolaide no sugar just make a dye bath of what ever color you want

 

[IcyWolf]

Human grade food coloring is safe to use, if you want to go a more natural route you can use veggies and fruits to dye the wood as well. use beets for red/purple, blueberries for blue, etc. This way can just get a bit pricey. You can also use koolaid, just don't get the mixture that already has the sugar in it.

 

[Featheredsamurai]

Food grade dye is what most manufactures use, using fruits and berries as a dye is also fantastic but pricey. I'd personally go with the fruits and berrys because it's the most natural

 

[SparkkiSparkS]

Thanks everyone! I have just started to dye a few pieces using food coloring and their looking great. I have also put a few away for the natural dye, but thats tomorrows project! =]

 

[bumblebec]

Most people use natural food dye, which is safe. You can also buy VitaCritter, which is made especially for colouring bird toys.

VitaCritter ~ Bird Toy Colourant

I would not suggest using flavoured fooy dye or colouring as it can incourage birds to actually eat the wood, which can be bad for them.

 

[Alisana]

Most people use natural food dye, which is safe. You can also buy VitaCritter, which is made especially for colouring bird toys.

VitaCritter ~ Bird Toy Colourant

I would not suggest using flavoured fooy dye or colouring as it can incourage birds to actually eat the wood, which can be bad for them.

+ 1 the above post.

With human grade food dye, water it down a bit. And keep an eye on the droppings. I've heard of some people who use straight food dye without watering down then have a near heart attack when the birds droppings are pink/red/blue/ etc because the amount of dye in the wood was too high.

 

[lene1949]

best I've found is koolaide no sugar just make a dye bath of what ever color you want

I thought this stuff went into car radiators...

 

[Alisana]

best I've found is koolaide no sugar just make a dye bath of what ever color you want

I thought this stuff went into car radiators...

I thought that birds didn't like koolaid, myself...

Chicago airport uses kool-aid to stop birds from flying into engines [Flat] - TribalWar Forums

Wildlife experts at O'Hare International Airport hope the grape flavoring used in Kool-Aid will encourage pesky birds that endanger planes to satisfy their appetites elsewhere.
[...] the nerve endings in birds' nasal passages are easily irritated by the grape extract contained in a chemical cocktail called methyl anthranilate, according to Richard Dolbeer, national coordinator of airport wildlife services at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
"The grape flavoring acts as a repellent, like a bird tear gas," Dolbeer said. "Methyl anthranilate is actually a non-toxic food flavoring that is used in grape Kool-Aid and grape bubble gum, but birds find it very aggravating.
"To us, it would be like the smell of ammonia salts," he added.

[Edit]

Ehh... it's debatable. Not sure now.

RE: Evaluation of Methyl Anthranilate for Use as a Bird Repellent in Selected Crops

Methyl anthranilate (MA) did not provide effective repellent effects when applied to crops to prevent stand reduction by birds. When compared to crops protected by netting and to untreated plots, greater crop stand reduction was observed for MA treated crops. MA at 2.0 pt/A was more efficacious than a lower rate of 1.0 pt/A for certain crops. MA performance was not enhanced by the addition of an adjuvant. Greater activity with birds moving from plant to plant was observed in MA treated crops compared to untreated plants.

Note: Methyl anthranilate, which can be found in grape flavoured koolaid. It is used for flavoring of candy, soft drinks (e.g. grape soda), gums, and drugs. It is also secreted by the musk glands of foxes and dogs, and lends a "sickly sweetness" to the smell of rotting flesh.

 

[lokiNotis]

Great question, I was getting ready to ask this myself! Thanks!